Articles by J.P. Skelly

House lawmakers narrowly rejected Senate Bill 51 on Monday, putting a halt to a measure that would have required South Dakota public schools to prominently display the Ten Commandments in classrooms. The bill had already [Read More…]

Rebecca Erickson has been appointed by First Judicial Circuit Presiding Judge Cheryle Gering as the new Davison County Clerk of Courts. Erickson is replacing Barb McKean, who is retiring after more than 16 years of [Read More…]

Austin Goss-SDBA The state of South Dakota will pay approximately $200 million more in office rental costs over the next 30 years under two leases with a Rapid City-based developer. The contracts, signed during former [Read More…]

We’re learning more regarding an attempted kidnapping Thursday afternoon. Mitchell Police were called around 3:35 to the 1700 block of North Kimball for an attempted kidnapping. Responding officers were told the suspect was no longer [Read More…]

A man from Arkansas was arrested Thursday after a standoff that occurred at a residence north of Witten in Tripp County. The Attorney General’s reported law enforcement officers had served an arrest warrant and a [Read More…]

A West River lawmaker’s proposal to defund the Huron School District has sparked widespread backlash at the South Dakota State Capitol. His one-sentence House Bill 1224 would have prohibited the state from sending general fund [Read More…]

A former state prison employee has been sentenced to 90 days in prison after earlier pleading guilty to one count of a Prohibited Sexual Act Between a Prison Employee and Prisoner. 36 year Cassandra Jelsma [Read More…]

Mitchell’s Avera Queen of Peace Hospital recently began offering robot-assisted, laparoscopic surgery. John Lyle is Director of Perioperative Services. He says it’s a boost to surgeons. “It allows them more precise visualization but also more [Read More…]

A major rural water pipeline project with the Randall Community Water District  coming to Davison County is poised to begin. Kyle Peters of A-1 Development Solutions updated county commissioners during Tuesday’s meeting. “By and large, [Read More…]

A man from Rapid City has been arrested on state charges for threatening Gov. Larry Rhoden. 28 year old Hudson Wheeler was arrested Monday and charged with one felony count of Threatening or Intimidating a [Read More…]

From: Cycle Source Magazine Vanessa Klock, CFO and Vice President of Klock Werks, has been honored with Cycle Source Magazine’s Woman of the Year Award in recognition of her leadership and contributions to the motorcycle [Read More…]

BY STU WHITNEY South Dakota News Watch The leader of South Dakota’s primary refugee resettlement program has condemned online attacks by tech billionaire Elon Musk regarding the legality of the organization’s federal funding. Rebecca Kiesow-Knudsen, [Read More…]

A 24 year old woman from Yankton died and a passenger was injured in a single vehicle crash nine miles south of Freeman late Monday morning. The South Dakota Department of Public Safety reported the [Read More…]

BY STU WHITNEY South Dakota News Watch Has South Dakota soured on direct democracy? The answer to that question will be partly answered during the 2025 legislative session, as Republican lawmakers continue a recent trend [Read More…]

South Dakota Searchlight-By Seth Tupper Though he didn’t credit the Biden administration by name, South Dakota’s top environmental official recently praised one of the administration’s laws for spurring a “water renaissance that was overdue” in [Read More…]

By: Makenzie Huber-South Dakota Searchlight Larry Rhoden owes his new job as governor to Kristi Noem, but her political career might have stalled shortly after it began if not for his help, according to a [Read More…]

A 16 year old youth from Wagner, whose case had earlier been transferred to adult court, was sentenced Friday to 20 years in prison after earlier pleading guilty to one count of First Degree Manslaughter [Read More…]

A 35 year old man from Watertown has been sentenced to life in prison after earlier pleading guilty to two counts of First Degree Rape and one count of Sexual Contact With A Child Under [Read More…]

South Dakota Searchlight-Makenzie Huber Lawmakers in the House Education Committee shot down former South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem’s proposed $4 million education savings account program and a similar, competing proposal Wednesday morning at the Capitol [Read More…]

Governor Larry Rhoden has selected his Lieutenant Governor. “Ladies and gentlemen, I am more than pleased to announce my selection to the next Lieutenant Governor of the State of South Dakota, Tony Venhuizen”, said Rhoden. [Read More…]